Water Music
by Sasaria
Summary: Haru's got a special present for Yuki's birthday, and Yuki's not so sure he's going to like it... - March 31st Birthday Fic for Yuki Sanada -


**A/N: **I'm only 31 minutes late for Yuki's birthday... orz. It's Yuki's first birthday since the series aired; and I found it so cute how Haru self-proclaimed his birthday as a day after Yuki's. Part II for Haru's b-day will (hopefully) be up tomorrow.

Reviews are very much appreciated~!

- Enjoy ! -

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**Water Music**

* * *

With a new year came a new calendar. Since fishing had been the newest, strangest, most exciting thing that had happened to him since 2012, Yuki decided to buy a calendar with fish on it. Not flabby, mega-sized kingfish or deadly barracudas– no. He bought a calendar with faceless, watercolor fish. Each month had a new color palette for the fish, green and red for summer months, blue, white and silver for winter months, purple and pink for spring, and orange and yellow for fall months. Even though he was late by practically three months, he still needed the calendar.

As he tacked his newest purchase up on the wall opposite his bed, the light thudding of footsteps entered in through the door. It was always strange how people could be identified by the way they walked. His grandmother had dainty, shuffling steps, his teacher had heavy, fast-paced clomps, Haru had light, steady pitter-patters.

Even if Yuki hadn't memorized the sound of his steps, Haru always made sure to announce himself with his voice. On most occasions, it was a candied sing-songy shout of "Yuki~!" with heavy emphasis on the last syllable. No one had ever shouted his name so loud or with as much vitality. At first it had been embarrassing, but now that everyone knew Haru, they often smiled when he chirped Yuki's name.

"Yuki, what are you doing?"

"Hanging a calendar," he replies without giving Haru a second glance. He had gotten into a bad habit of glaring whenever Haru came around. Not always because he was angry with him, just because Haru was a little extreme– too happy, too energetic, too sugary. But Haru was who he was and people liked what made Haru, Haru.

"What's a calendar?"

Yuki can just picture Haru tilting his head at the sight. His eyes would be wide in curiosity, that innocent smile would be playing at his lips, his hands drawn behind his back because Yuki has told him a million and one times not to touch anything, for fear that he might break it.

"It's an organization of all the days in a year," Yuki says. He sidesteps his way over to an old, middle-school pencil box decorated with his name. Haru follows him, mimicking his stride and stance down to the very step. From the pencil box, Yuki takes out an old permanent marker, still packed with black ink. He uncaps it and begins going through the pages on the calendar.

January has passed, February has passed, it's the second to last day of March. He hovers over the box with the number 31 on it and writes in "My Birthday" in his best handwriting. Then, he proceeds to flip the pages, leafing through the months. He scrawls in similar entries for August (Natsuki's Birthday) and November (Akira's Birthday).

When he writes indications for traditional holidays, school breaks, and test dates, he recaps the marker and slides it into his pocket. But when he turns around, Haru has invaded his personal space with wide, gleaming eyes.

"Yuki, it's your birthday tomorrow!"

"Eh–"

"Right here, on the calendar!" Haru presses his index on the box with the black words scrawled inside. "Tomorrow."

"Yeah. The 31st has always been my birthday..."

"Are you going fishing?" Haru asks excitedly, balling his hands into little fists. Yuki feels a shiver go down his spine when he sees that wild, excited spirit reflected in Haru's eyes. He can't say no to those eyes.

"I... might..." he stammers. "There are other things I want to do on my birthday, too." It's wasn't a lie. He was going to be doing plenty of things on his birthday like breathing and sleeping, and more than likely making breakfast. He hadn't really planned on anything specific or elaborate. A nice cake, a bowl of maki tamago and sauteed burdock, and maybe a little homework. But from the way Haru was smiling at him, from the way his shoulders were trembling in excitement, from the way he was uttering strange, happy noises under his breath, Haru had other ideas.

* * *

Yuki had expected to be fishing on his birthday. He had expected Haru to take him to the ocean and the two would fish as they usually did. He was prepared for casting, he was prepared for gathering the right bait, he was even prepared for Haru roping him into shouting "ENOSHIMA-DON" (not that Yuki minded it so much) in union at the top of his lungs.

Yuki did not expect to be swimming. He did not expect Haru to take him to the ocean, right _into_ the ocean, up to his neck. He was not prepared for Haru jumping in after him, he was not prepared for Haru splashing him, and he definitely wasn't prepared for everyone he had ever met in Enoshima to be watching him from the safety and comfort of Ayumi's boat.

No. Yuki wasn't expecting that Haru would try to drown him on his birthday.

"I– I– I– can't swim!" He garbled, falling beneath the waves just to bob back up a second later. His vision was growing faulty, his nostrils were filled with water, his mouth was overflowing with sea foam. He was dying. And what was Haru doing?

"Happy Birthday, Yuki!"

He was wishing him happy birthday.

"Haru! I can't– swim!" Yuki cries, flanging his arms around like a newborn bird trying to fly. "Are you trying to kill me?!"

Haru eases over the waves and grasps onto Yuki's arms. "No, Yuki, like this." He raises Yuki's arms to bring them into a dog paddle, but his arms were exactly what was keeping him afloat. Yuki bubbles under the water once more, but Haru quickly pulls him out.

"I wanted you to celebrate the same way we do on my planet."

"Celebrate what?! We're not on your planet!"

"Holidays." Haru spreads Yuki's arms and pushes on his chest until Yuki is on his back. To this, Yuki flinches and jerks his way back up.

"No, Yuki. You have to take a deep breath and lay on your back."

Yuki finds himself hyperventilating while Haru pushes him back onto his back. Yuki's stomach begins to swarm, all the oceans of the world are tumbling around in his stomach. His legs begin to float out from under him.

"Breath out," Haru tells him, and Yuki hesitatingly obeys. As the air wheezes out of him, the water begins to immerse him and the panic bullets begin to whiz throughout his stomach again. His heart begins to skip, but Haru holds up his hand. "Inhale slowly, Yuki. You won't drown."

Yuki inhales again, and the water floods away from his face. His legs float out from under him again. The water barely swishes him back and forth. He feels like he's floating on a cloud. As his heartbeat steadies, it feels like he's floating on a dream.

From Ayumi's boat, a loud cheer reaches him. Shouts and screams of "way to go, Yuki!" and "attaboy!" The bullets of alarm begin to drain away like the sea foam. Haru falls onto his back as well, floating near Yuki. The water isn't freezing anymore. It's cooling, relaxing, a perfect addition to the endless night sky above. The skies of Enoshima have always been beautiful, but this night, God has simply outdone Himself.

Constellations dance across every corner of the sky. Clusters of pearly stars swirl in a yellowy mist. The moon's face is full, spreading light across the night.

"Is this what you do on your planet? Teach people how to swim?"

"I wasn't teaching you, Yuki. I wanted you to feel the ocean," Haru murmurs back, his voice gentle and relaxed.

Yuki flexes his fingers under the water. He had never floated in the ocean before. He was always overwhelmed by it; drowned in it. The feeling of suffocating underneath the ocean's fingers always came when he was meeting new people.

"Is this is what you do on your birthday, Haru?"

"I don't have a birthday, Yuki."

Somehow, even though Haru's voice had streams of bliss flowing through them, those words chilled Yuki on the inside. No birthday, no identification, no beginning.

"Do you want a birthday?" he says into the empty air. "Something we can celebrate while you're here?"

Haru soars up off of his back, causing Yuki to falter and sink slightly. "A birthday?!"

"Yeah, you can choose the date, I guess."

"Tomorrow!"

"Huh?"

"Tomorrow! I want to celebrate right after Yuki."

April 1st and March 31st.

Yuki slips onto his back again, shifting his eyes to the stars. "I guess I have a new date to add to the calendar."


End file.
